Civil rights activist says President Obama mirrors Reagan's path By STEVEN BERGER<http://www.palmbeachpost.com/localnews/content/local_news/epaper/2009/02/12/mailto:[email protected]>
Palm Beach Post Staff Writer Friday, February 13, 2009 BOCA RATON — Barack Obama's rise has been compared to many lauded former presidents — John F. Kennedy, Franklin Roosevelt, Abraham Lincoln. Mary Frances Berry has a new one to add: Ronald Reagan. <http://palmbeachpost.printthis.clickability.com/pt/cpt?action=cpt&title=Civil+rights+activist+says+President+Obama+mirrors+Reagan%27s+path&expire=&urlID=34180558&fb=Y&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.palmbeachpost.com%2Flocalnews%2Fcontent%2Flocal_news%2Fep#> enlarge<http://palmbeachpost.printthis.clickability.com/pt/cpt?action=cpt&title=Civil+rights+activist+says+President+Obama+mirrors+Reagan%27s+path&expire=&urlID=34180558&fb=Y&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.palmbeachpost.com%2Flocalnews%2Fcontent%2Flocal_news%2Fep#> Berry <http://palmbeachpost.printthis.clickability.com/pt/cpt?action=cpt&title=Civil+rights+activist+says+President+Obama+mirrors+Reagan%27s+path&expire=&urlID=34180558&fb=Y&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.palmbeachpost.com%2Flocalnews%2Fcontent%2Flocal_news%2Fep#yourpost> Post your comments on this story below<http://palmbeachpost.printthis.clickability.com/pt/cpt?action=cpt&title=Civil+rights+activist+says+President+Obama+mirrors+Reagan%27s+path&expire=&urlID=34180558&fb=Y&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.palmbeachpost.com%2Flocalnews%2Fcontent%2Flocal_news%2Fep#yourpost> More local news Latest breaking news,<http://www.palmbeachpost.com/localnews/content/local_news/>photos and all of today's *Post* stories. [image: City Pulse] On the beat, <http://www.palmbeachpost.com/citypulse> behind the agenda: * Post* reporters cover your area in City Pulse.<http://www.palmbeachpost.com/citypulse> Share This Story During her keynote speech Thursday to about 400 people at Florida Atlantic University, the civil rights activist said the elections of Obama and Reagan shared key similarities — a landslide victory and a promise of change. The conditions Reagan faced early in his presidency also included national security threats and high unemployment, so Obama has the potential to match his popularity, Berry said at the Alan B. Larkin Symposium. "You cannot be a great president unless there are challenges," she said. President Carter appointed Berry to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights in 1980, a post she held until she resigned in 2004. She is now a history professor at the University of Pennsylvania. Berry was chairwoman of the commission when it found that discrimination in Palm Beach County's voting system may have cost Al Gore the presidency. The commission cited various instances of discrimination in its 2001 report, including large numbers of blacks who could not be identified as registered voters at polling places and confusing ballots that led many to miscast their votes. Still, Obama's election last year does not signify a significant blow to discrimination throughout the nation, Berry said. "So many people are saying we are in a post-racial society," she said. "We should see his election as an opportunity to solve these problems once and for all, instead of resting on our laurels." The symposium, titled "Civil Rights and the Presidency: From Nixon to Obama," brings six speakers who will each elaborate on relationships between the civil rights movement and individual presidents. Berry's influence under five different presidents made her the perfect choice to examine these relationships, said Kenneth Osgood, the symposium's director. "She really helped set the debate and keep civil rights on the agenda," Osgood said. The first Larkin Symposium was held in 2007. Previous symposiums focused on the public's opinion of wars and women in politics. The free event continues from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. today. *Find this article at:* http://www.palmbeachpost.com/localnews/content/local_news/epaper/2009/02/12/0212berry.html -- "I'm selfish, impatient, and a little insecure. I make mistakes, I am out of control, and at times hard to handle, but if you can't handle me at my worst, then you sure as hell don't deserve me at my best." ~Marilyn Monroe --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Black Focus Inc." group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/Black-Focus-Inc?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
